Dune 2 Casts Elvis Star As Iconic Villain?
It looks like there has been some more casting decisions made for Dune 2 with the Elvis biopic star now joining the ranks.
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The casting news for Dune 2 is starting to heat up with plans around the much-anticipated sequel starting to take real shape. Considering the size and scope of Frank Herbert’s epic novel, there are plenty of decisions to be made and the first movie only covered about half of the first book in all. One character coming for the sequel will be the cunning and sinister Feyd-Rautha and it looks like we know who will be playing the role. Deadline has it that Austin Butler is being eyed for the part and it would continue a pretty stellar run the young actor is having right now.
It would appear that the Dune 2 casting of Austin Butler in the role of Feyd-Rautha is all but confirmed and offers a chance to see how the studio plans on building out more of the Harkonnen family in the next film. Feyd-Rautha is the nephew of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, the sadistic and sinister head of the house who is at strict odds with the Atreides family. While not on the planet in the first film, Feyd-Rautha is part of the plans for the Baron when it comes to ultimately ruling Arrakis (and more). The character is more than capable of understanding the larger political games played within this world and is also adept at fighting as well. In the book, he is a formidable opponent, one of the many vying for ultimate power in this universe.
Austin Butler isn’t necessarily a household name at this point, but that’s not likely to be the case for long. After a solid run on kid-friendly Nickelodeon programming, he graduated to more adult fare and had a mini-breakout performance as Tex Watson in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. But the real star turn is about to come for Butler even before Dune 2 hits the big screen. That’s because he’s going to play Elvis in the biopic of the same name about The King. The Baz Luhrmann-led film looks like it will explore almost the entirety of Presley’s career and from early trailers, Butler appears sensational in the role. It is said to release this summer on June 24th.
Meanwhile, casting news for Dune 2 is starting to come at a steady pace. This week Florence Pugh was announced to have joined the film as Princess Irulan. These begin some of the roles that existed off Arrakis in the first film though we know that they will make their way to the spice planet by the end of things. The role of Emperor Shaddam IV is still hanging out there as well. We know that the sequel is set to dive into the second half of the Herbert novel, likely spending significantly more time with the Fremen and exploring the relationship between Timothee Chalamat’s Paul and Zendaya’s Chani. But some of it should also be on Geidi Prime, the homeworld of the Harknonnens.
Dune 2 will look to capitalize on the success of the first Denis Villenueve-led film which topped $400 million at the box office despite releasing simultaneously on HBO Max as well as in theaters. As of right now, the film is set to release on October 20, 2023.
